Your Fondest Memories
by ConfoederatioHelvetica
Summary: Today, like every year, you go to World Theme Park, expecting as always to have a good time. But a special encounter makes this day truly exceptional. IcelandxReader one-shot, done on request for ShunKazamis-Girl


There is theme park in southern Germany that is called 'Der Weltpark' or World-Park, and it is known throughout its neighboring countries and even has some international popularity. Its specialty is that it is divided into sections, each devoted to a particular country and, expectedly, it highlights the stereotypical image of those countries. Of course, not all countries are represented, but there are many, so many.  
The park is immense. It is almost impossible to see everything in one day, and indeed many families come here to stay for two or three days in the themed hotels that have sprung up around the park, like a full-scale replica of half of the coliseum in Rome. Indeed, the park itself is very family oriented; a lot of the rides are not exactly what the average adrenaline-seeker would enjoy. Nevertheless, it caters to everyone.  
And speaking of catering, in every country there is at least one restaurant, also themed, where one can have dishes which are a specialty in that particular country.  
Whether fish and chips in England, Pizza in Italy, Burgers in the US, it has it all.  
The park is old, but not old in the sense that it is not contemporary. Eighty-six years it has been in existence from its first opening, and has been continually expanded each year to include more and more countries.  
You love going to that park, and have been going there every year of your life since you could remember. So many fond childhood memories took place here, and you know the layout of the park exactly, even though its size and complexity warrant people carrying a map with them. You know the screams from the tougher rides, the babble of the people, the music playing over the loudspeaker system.  
Beyond the entrance gates is Germany, of course, the first country that was constructed. The countries were laid out in a way that didn't necessarily correspond to their position on a world map, but it worked.  
To the left of Germany lay Switzerland and Austria, to the right France and England, and straight-ahead Italy. From there the park expanded in all directions, reaching as far as Japan, Australia, Canada and even Antarctica.  
The park opens at nine in the morning, and you arrived there at quarter past, only to find the parking lot already packed and the attendants directing new arrivals where to drive.  
Soon you join the multitudes of people swarming from all directions towards the entrance. Around many languages can be heard. French, Dutch, Italian, German, and a strange one that sounds sort of like German but not really, one that you have yet to identify.  
As you walk past one of the cars you glance at its license plate and you see a white cross on red background winking at you.  
Ah…Danish…no…Swiss, yes, those people must be Swiss. Of course, the border was not very far from here after all…  
You stand in queue for a short while to buy your ticket, then proceed to the turnstile. A man takes your ticket, tears off a part of it and motions you to go on, saying something in French that you assume to mean 'Have a good day'.  
You stand in front of a wooden signpost, trying to decide where to go. Feeling a little queasy, you decide to take it easy first and head to Switzerland.  
This area is an exact replica of a typical alpine mountain village, surrounded by a water moat on the one side, and fir trees on the other. There is even a small food stand in one of the houses, and the smell of molten cheese drifts into your nose, making your mouth water even though breakfast was merely an hour ago.  
The queue for the Alpine bobsled is extremely short, so you decide to go there first.  
When you walk out of the ride several minutes later you feel cheerful, yet not entertained. The Alpine bobsled is a good starter, the way it twists and turns gracefully at a medium speed, making a full circle above the village, but you've gotten into the rhythm, and you just want more.  
The next ride, the Mont Blanc Lightning has a large drop at the beginning, but it's crowded as always. 40 minutes wait for a two-minute ride that's not even really thrilling? Not a chance, so you decide to move on to Austria, which is just next-door.  
Austria has only one ride, the Alpine Express Train, but it's quite fast, and the 'train' goes around twice the whole track.

After you've done that you feel a little more in the spirit. It was faster than the bobsled, and it took you inside and outside of a large warm and sweet-smelling cave. But still, this was only kids' stuff, the cave after all was filled with glowing crystals which statues of gnomes were harvesting using picks and mine carts.  
Time to move on to the good stuff.  
Russia…you feel the sense of danger and the presence of a strange other as you step through the shrunk down replica of the onion-domed St. Basil's Cathedral. Left and right are Russian peasant houses from centuries past, and they form an alley to the main attraction of this country. The SOYUZ. Originally a Russian spacecraft, it had a ride dedicated to it. You look at the futuristic mirror covered towers of the ride, the track curving around it before taking a steep dive. Yeah, this is the real stuff.  
The line for this ride was long, but from experience you know that it moves along quickly, and sure enough, within fifteen minutes you're inside, the UV lamps providing the only source of light, and making any white fabric that the people in front of you are wearing glow.  
The ride takes you first inside pitch-blackness in one of the towers. Flashes of light like from hundreds of cameras enable you to see that the track is taking you upwards in circles, higher and higher. In the center of this loops a rocket slowly emerges, a replica of the Soyuz itself. You stare in wonder at the large hulking shape until you reach the top of the tower. Even though you've been here many times before, it never ceases to amaze you.  
Then you're off, the track takes you out of the tower into the blinding sunlight. A slight wind stirs up here as you look down on the park at large.  
The chain of carts curves around the towers G-forces fooling you into thinking that it will throw you off and you will go sailing into nothingness.  
The beauty of the ride is that you can go downward either way, facing forward or backward, and you have no way of knowing which it will be. Personally you think that going forwards is much more enjoyable.  
And you're going backwards. Great.

After the Soyuz you feel ready for something more, more extreme, higher, and faster. And you know just the one for that, the Silver Comet.  
Recently the park has become more of a sponsored place. Businesses took interest and helped fund some of the rides, a good publicity stunt.  
The Silver Comet was sponsored by a popular German Automobile company and it was built in the theme of a racetrack.  
And the wait was always short too.  
The most painful and exciting part of it is the trip upwards. Rising higher and higher, the Silver Comet gets you to the highest point in the entire park. And slowly the cart goes over the top, very slowly and it tips down. People are already screaming as the carts go down almost vertically. Your stomach seems to rise up into your throat, and you scream as well, not because you're scared, but because you know that is the only way you'll be able to breathe.  
The initial drop is the largest, and everything after that is a piece of cake.  
Still, you always enjoy this ride, and you immediately go a second time. You remember the time you came to the park and you saw this, a new ride at the time, and how scary it looked. You remember how you were fearful to go on it, but in the end the rush of adrenaline it gave you was more than enough of a reward.  
This wasn't a challenge anymore. It was nice, but you knew the ride.  
However, the beauty of the park was that it kept expanding continually. The newest country that had been added was Iceland, which was beyond Scandinavia. It was a fairly large area, especially when comparing it to Scandinavia, which was where Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark had all been put together.  
But it looked good. Very authentic, with a multitude of houses which harbored real stores oddly enough. Who would imagine that people would care to buy clothes in a theme park?  
And it had two new rides.  
One was the Odin. It didn't look especially tough from the ground, but its specialty was that it was made of wood.  
Wood.  
And it was themed strongly after Nordic lore.  
Two giant stone statues of Viking warriors holding spears and shields, standing beneath the giant stone archway.  
40 minutes wait? Well…why not?  
The line was long, but one couldn't see all of it as it snaked out of sight.  
The Nordic theme continued through the queue. You learned a lot about the mythology…of Yggdrasil, the world tree, of Asgard, the realm of the gods in the branches of Yggdrasil, Midgard, the realm of the humans, and Niflheim, Svartalfheim and Muspelheim, the realm of mythical creatures.  
The queue was almost at its end when you reached Mimir's Well, the source of wisdom.  
A stairwell that was the Bifröst, the rainbow bridge led up to Valhalla, where the carts were waiting to take visitors on the ride.

The ride itself was not bad. Sort of intermediate in terms of thrill, but it was loud owing to the fact that it was made completely of wood.  
Still…there was one last one…one that looked like it could scare the living daylights out of you if you went on it.  
For it had a looping.  
And its track twisted to go head over. Several times.  
And it was fast. Dreadfully fast.  
The IceFire coaster.  
Still, who were you to back down a challenge?  
The way to go to the ride was very long, and it leads through a building that was also a conference hall. Video clips played on the walls, showing pictures of Iceland's beauty, and of the web way of pipelines and drilling station where oil and natural gas were extracted from the earth in the ocean and on land.  
Kinda ironic.  
Apparently this ride was sponsored by an Icelandic gas company, which explained why the country was so large in comparison to the others.  
As you got closer and closer to getting on the ride, you got more and more nervous.  
Was this not a bit too hasty?  
The line led you right next to the start ramp. Every now and then you could hear the telltale wail of a siren. Steam billowed from the building where the entrance to the ride was, the doors opened and the carts shot out, immediately going at what seems like maximum speed.  
It was slightly unnerving.  
Someone pushes you in the back and you notice that you've been standing still, looking at the carts while the line was moving on.  
Suddenly you panicked, you wanted to get out of the queue, just not on that scary ride!  
Someone puts a hand on your shoulder and you freeze. Who would make such a familiar gesture?  
You turn around to look at the person, and find yourself staring at a paled youth with blue eyes. He's wearing a red jacket and a white shirt underneath.  
It couldn't be.  
"You okay?" Iceland asks, his voice monotonous, his expression unchanging.  
Your face flushes from pale green to red with surprise and excitement. How?  
"Y-yes…" you answer timidly.  
"You don't look all right. Is it the ride?" he gestures at the track and you flinch as you hear more screams.  
You sink your head down in shame.  
"Yes."  
"Come" he says, and grasps your hand in his.  
You expected his touch to be cold like his exterior, but it is warm, and his hand is soft and comforting.  
He leads you back into the queue, and you wait.  
You feel very aware of yourself, standing there with Iceland next to you. He is silent; his eyes stare ahead unblinkingly, his gaze not wavering.  
A recorded message plays over the loudspeakers, first in German, then in French and lastly in English. The speaker clearly tried hard to imitate an Icelandic accent in its most stereotypical fashion. It's almost painful to listen to.  
"Hi…dear guests, due to gas coming out of the ground often in Iceland ve ask you not to smoke at any time vile vaiting for zis ride. Sank you."  
"That's not true." Iceland mutters.  
You're confused.  
"What?"  
His gaze remains fixed.  
"I don't often expel gas, that's just a rumor. Probably one that Denmark started."  
"Oh…" your cheeks grow pink.  
The queue moves forward, and for the rest of the time you stay silent, with Iceland still holding your hand in his, comforting you. His exterior may have been cold, but you could feel from his touch that there was more to him than met the eye.  
You finally get to the ride and get into the cart, the safety harness coming down and securing you tightly in your seat. In front of you, between the two handrails you see a little screen that displays your pulse.  
93.  
and 80 was normal. Of course you were nervous! Twice over!  
You look over at Iceland's display and gape.  
120.  
That's two beats per second!  
Yet he seemed very calm and composed, even though under the surface his heart was racing.  
So the rumors were true. He boiled beneath the surface with a hot bright fire, just like his country. You wonder what it burns for.  
Or who.  
The carts move forward and around a bend, to what looks like a drilling site. Steam hisses from valves, and people in mining gear are standing around, checking clipboards and observing computer screens.  
Suddenly a red siren blares, an alarm sounds filling the small space with deafening noise and flashing light. Steam billows at you from everywhere. The doors in front of you open, and the carts shoot forward, along a long straight track, going from zero to one hundred in almost no time.  
The track slopes upwards in a giant horseshoe and falls back down again immediately.  
You scream your lungs out to breathe, and glance down at the display, just managing to make out the number through all the shaking.  
169.  
You try to look over to Iceland, but the acceleration presses your body into the seat.  
Ahead of you is the looping.  
You curve upwards and for a brief moment you feel gravity reversing and the sensation of being head over, then you're out of it again, and the track twists, sending you into a barrel roll.  
Your screams of terror become screams of excitement, of laughter as you join in the chorus of all the people around you. All except Iceland.  
The track twists left and right, up and down and sideways in tight loops, followed by a double barrel roll that seems to almost throw you off the track.  
And then it is over, the cart slows down, and you come back to where you started.  
You try to get up, but find that the rush of adrenaline has your legs all shaky, and the wont obey you. A hand stretches out in your direction.  
Iceland's.  
You take it with relief and he helps you to get out.  
Together you walk a distance away for the track, the feeling of giddiness slowly subsiding from you. You begin to feel warm again as you notice that you've not let go of Iceland's hand this whole time. It's warm, very warm. You can feel his pulls through his hand, so strong.  
After a brief moment of silence, he asks,  
"What do you want to do now?"  
You're surprised at the question, and are not sure what to respond.  
"Do you fancy lunch?" he asks.  
You only nod, aware that it's now past one, and you hadn't eaten for six hours. You feel your stomach grumble at the thought, and hope that it wasn't too audible.  
"I'll treat you. They have some good food in a restaurant I know here…"  
Before you can say anything or refuse to take his offer to pay for you, he takes you by your hand and leads you out of the section devoted to Iceland, devoted to him, and you head back to Scandinavia, which lies slightly higher than the rest of the park on an artificial cliff that is supposed to resemble a fjord. Snaking around the bottom of it is the wide fjord-rafting canal.

The restaurant he takes you to is on a terrace, overlooking that same canal, and is so fittingly called the Fjord-Restaurant.  
Because it is past lunchtime already, there are several seats free, and so you choose one that is right near the railing, thousands and thousands of gallons of water rushing beneath it and the occasional raft passing by.  
The restaurant, like all in the park, is self-service.  
You don't want to be a burden on Iceland, especially since you know that he used to suffer from financial difficulties quite a bit, so you look for something inexpensive on the menu.  
Fortunately, this is Germany after all, and usually the portions served are very generous indeed.  
Iceland looks critically at the menu above the small queue of people.  
"Hm..looks like the got somethin' here…not sure how good it is though…still, usually can't go wrong with fish…what're you having?"  
"Oh…uhm…" you look at the menu "I think that salmon filet looks nice…" your voice trails off.  
He regards your choice.  
"Yeah…yeah, sure."  
He orders, and before you can even pull out your wallet he's paid for yours too. You blush again, but Iceland thankfully does not see, or gallantly pretends not to.  
You sit back down again and eat in silence. Although you wish to talk, Iceland doesn't seem to be in the mood…it was hard to tell really just by looking at him. Iceland's natural exterior prevented that. So he was either not in the mood to talk, or just incredibly shy.  
You decided to test the waters.  
"So…uhm…do you come here often?" you ask.  
Iceland looks up from his lunch, looking slightly taken aback.  
"Hm?"  
"Do you…is this your first time here?"  
Iceland seems to come out of some deep thought.  
"Ah…no…I've been here before, several times, although not as often as others. I come here to see how to become popular, how to get more tourists…there's a lot in my home to see, but people just don't know. You saw the roller coaster, yes?"  
You nod.  
"Part of my effort towards getting more publicity, even if it is done by the industry. I'll see how it goes. Hopefully it'll attract more people."  
"I'd like you go to Ice- to come visit you I mean, but…it's difficult."  
He just nods, and sinks back into contemplative silence.  
Apparently not much in the mood to talk after all.

After lunch you walk around the park again together. Iceland, having seen your reaction in the queue of the IceFire Coaster, suggests taking you on rides that are a bit more forgiving. You gladly accept. That was enough for one day. Besides, you don't need an adrenaline rush to have a good time, not with Iceland around.  
You stay in Scandinavia you go on the Blaestjammer, a Viking ship that rocks backwards and forwards until it's almost vertical to the ground.  
You go to Greece, where you go on Medusa's Curse, a room in which you sit, where the walls rotate so you seem to be hanging from the ceiling. At one time you get so convinced that you're in fact upside down that you grasp on to Iceland's hand, feeling the heat that emanates from him which has a calming effect on you. Iceland doesn't seem to take notice.  
The day was getting late, but you have time for one more ride before you think it is time to head back outside.  
for a brief moment you try to recall where you haven't been yet.  
The Tyrolean Log Flume in Austria.  
Not an ideal ride, for you tend to get somewhat wet while on it from the splashes of water, but on the other hand…the logs seat no more than three adults, and no one will get in with both you if they could avoid it…and it's on the way out, so you wouldn't even have to take a detour.  
You run this idea across Iceland.  
"Hm…sure, sounds good enough."  
And so, ten minutes later, both of you are sitting in a log flume. Iceland is sitting in the back, while you're in the front. The flume doesn't have seats, so the person in front can lean against the person in the back, which is exactly what you do as the ride pulls you upwards, under the guise of falling victim to gravity. Surprisingly, you find Iceland putting and arm around you, and holding you gently, not uttering a single word of explanation.  
Not that you needed one. It felt wonderful.  
After the peak, there was a little drop, then around a bend, then another, larger drop. Ahead of you the largest fall came into view.  
It wasn't steep, and it wasn't long, but what you feared was in fact the splash of cold water. You hadn't brought any spare clothes with you. So, looking back, you conclude that going on this ride had most likely been a bad idea.  
The flume dropped and raced down the waterslide. You brace yourself for impact, and for a moment you feel as if warm water had been splashed on your cheek. You reach up with one hand to check, but before you can, you reach the bottom.  
Water is thrown up in front of you and sprays all over your clothes, covering them in dark wet stains. Yet you still feel Iceland's arm around you.  
Totally worth it.  
You get out of the flume, and slowly, your clothes dripping water, you walk away, Iceland by your side. Since you acted as a shield for him, he was still relatively dry. Indeed, much more than you.  
A gust of wind brushes you while a cloud obscured the sun and you shiver slightly.  
Iceland noticed.  
"Are you okay?"  
You nod.  
"Y-yes…" but your chattering teeth betray you.  
"Here, don't want to get a cold, do you?" he says kindly, taking off his jacket and putting it around your shoulders.  
The jacket is warm on the inside, heated by what seemed to be Iceland's extreme body temperature. It feel cozy, and carries a scent that you can't place…it smells of dark green moss , of salt water, and of fresh snow…it smells of Iceland.  
"Come" he says, taking you by your hand.  
The Log Flume is one of those rides that take snapshots of people as they go down one drop. You and Iceland look on the different monitors to find your photo. Sure enough, you spot it in the top right corner.  
"There!" you say excitedly. Then you notice something strange…in the frame, Iceland is bent forward to you. At first you can't make out what exactly he's doing, but then the realization hits you.  
That wasn't a drop of warm water! He was kissing you on the cheek!  
You turn to Iceland to confront him about this, but before you can say a word, Iceland has you in a tight embrace and is kissing you, your lips meeting.  
At first, you are shocked, but then you relax.  
His lips are hot and moist; his embrace warms you like a furnace.  
You close your eyes and give in to him, to Iceland.

The World-Park…where your fondest memories were made.


End file.
